Whether
you are worried about the security consequences of using public Wi-Fi, or are tired
of having to put up with Wi-Fi dead zones in your home or business, today’s blog
is designed to take the WTF out of Wi-Fi.
I will endeavor to cover everything from what the latest in Wi-Fi, to how
to bulletproof your Wi-Fi security, to troubleshooting Wi-Fi problems, as well as
provide timely tips that will make your Wi-Fi use, safe and hassle free.

businesses and homes. But wait, it's
not a radio transmitted signal, it’s transmitted by light (i.e. Li-Fi). OK so it’s
not really Wi-Fi but it is the next big thing. This new type of wireless connection
will be extremely fast. It will be capable of transmitting data up to 100 times
faster than current Wi-Fi connections. However, there will be some real limitations.
For one, light does not travel through walls. This does enhanced security, but puts
a big dampener on reach and scope. Either way Li-Fi has great potential. It is still
in its infant stages and we will not be seeing it in our homes and offices for some
time to come. To find out more, check out the March 1st, 2016 notes
section of this blog that is associated with the story. Having said that, let’s look at where Wi-Fi came
from and what arguably is the best wireless connection available today.

Wi-Fi’s Cosmic Connection

Before
there were wireless networks, there were radio-telescopes. Back in the early 90’s Australian radio-astronomer
Dr. John O’Sullivan, along with colleagues, Dr. Terrence Percival, Graham Daniels,
John Deane and Diet Ostry were searching the heavens for mini black holes. While they were unsuccessful at realizing that
goal, what they accomplished was far more down to earth, since their research resulted
in the issuance of several key patents that gave birth to what would later become
known as Wi-Fi. Granted, early wireless speeds
were hardly lightning like, since they provided up to 2 Mbit/s
link speeds in 1997. This was increased to 11 Mbit/s in 1999 which proved to be
both popular and profitable.

So were the patents issued to the Commonwealth Scientific
and Research Organization (CSIRO), the Australian organization that sponsored the
scientist’s research. In a quote from Wikipedia:

“In April 2009, 14 technology companies agreed to pay CSIRO
$250 million for infringements on CSIRO patents. [10]This led to Australians labeling Wi-Fi as an Australian invention,

though this has been the subject of some controversy. CSIRO won
a further $220 million settlement for Wi-Fi patent-infringements in 2012 with global
firms in the United States required to pay the CSIRO licensing rights estimated
to be worth an additional $1 billion in royalties”.

What’s in a Name?

The
brand name Wi-Fi was coined by the consulting firm Interbrand in 1999.Phil Belanger, a founding member of the Wi-Fi Alliance
who presided over the selection of the name "Wi-Fi", also stated that
Interbrand inventedWi-Fias
aplay on wordswithhi-fi, and also
created the Wi-Fi logo. It was also felt
that the name “Wi-Fi” was a little catchier than the technical term “802.11b Direct
Sequence.”

While an umbrella term used to
designate any wireless local area network (WLAN), there are actually several subspecies
of Wi-Fi:

Local – which is any home or business that uses a wireless router to provide short range internet access known as a hotspot.

City-Wide – As early as 2001, a number of major metropolitan areas created city-wide Wi-Fi networks for their citizens.

Campus-Wide – Like cities, many college campuses broadcast Wi-Fi to students and faculty alike.

Mi-Fi – Many smartphones have the ability to create a Wi-Fi hotspot. This is especially useful if there is limited or no Wi-Fi access at a given location. Mi-Fi devices are also sold separately.

Bluetooth – which is used to connect devices wirelessly.

While it doesn’t matter where you receive your
wireless network connection from an access point of view, the problem with many
public Wi-Fi networks is that they are relatively insecure. Many wireless networks are Open, meaning that
they are unencrypted. This makes it child’s
play for others to watch your traffic even if they aren’t connected to the network. Even if you have a secure connection to such networks,
don’t be fooled. At the very least, the sites
you visit, can be identified and recorded since the Domain Name Server lookups your
computer does automatically are not encrypted.
In the worst case scenario, you should always assume that any network that
you don’t have admin control over, has the ability to show someone who does, everything
you are doing and seeing in real time.

With this in mind, any time you use any public
Wi-Fi connection, beware of entering any personal or financial information. When it comes to making a cybercriminals day,
passwords, credit card numbers or bank account routing numbers are a commodity that
can be quickly bought, sold, or used to make your money theirs. Should thieves gain access to your bank account
due to your carelessness, don’t go crying to your banker. He or she will inform
you that they are NOT required to issue you a refund. It’s the same policy that your auto insurer would
use were you to leave your car running with the keys in it. As far as they are concerned, it’s a case of finder’s
keepers. Many banks sent their account holders a waiver that once signed, released
them from any liability for losses incurred through the disclosure of online passwords. If you aren’t sure if your bank has done this,
you need to have a conversation with them, sooner rather than later.

As for beefing up your security to prevent eavesdropping,
consider adding Https address to everywhere your browser takes you. It works with Chrome, Firefox and Opera browsers
to encrypt your communications. While it
isn’t 100% bulletproof, it is better than nothing, which is what you have now. Check out: https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere. The other option is to avoid using public networks
altogether. The solution for this dilemma
is to use your cellphone as a hotspot. (Otherwise
known as Mi-Fi.) Also don’t forget to avoid using public Wi-Fi hot spots on your
smartphone! These devices usually don’t have any protection.

When it comes to Wi-Fi there are a number of frustrations
that many people have come to know and hate.
Most of these issues boil down to connectivity snafus. As good as it is, wireless connections will never
be as good as wired ones. We’re talking radio
here. Everything from the distance to the
router to obstructions and even other nearby networks can interfere with wireless
signals. While most users simply grit their
teeth and endure these hassles, there are solutions to some Wi-Fi WTFs.

1. Slow Router or No Router
– Most
routers broadcast at 2.5GHz. Unfortunately,
so do other appliances, including garage door openers, baby monitors, cordless phones,
microwave ovens and other electronic devices.
If you have recently noticed that your connection speed has slowed or stopped,
the first thing you need to think about is whether you have added any new electronic
devices lately. By turning off the offending
device, you may reestablish your connection.

If
that doesn’t work, you can always add a Wi-Fi booster or repeater to your system. One solution is to add the Linksys WGA600N to
your existing router. This device will allow
your router to choose from one of 23 channels that broadcast at 5GHz. It’s the router equivalent of switching stations.
Some newer routers also come with this option build in.

Another
solution is to purchase one or more of the devices called Eero. These devices are what Radiohead’s call repeaters. Instead of relying on one router to broadcast
to your home or office, what Eero does is create an array of mini routers that together
fill your space with signal sufficient to provide consistent coverage. Bear in mind that Eero isn’t cheap. Each unit retails for $200.

Solution
number three is to simply upgrade your existing router. Particularly if you are into online gaming and
are frustrated by slow speed, D-Link makes a DGL-4500 router that is souped-up for
gaming.

2. Locked Out – I’ve forgotten my password
and can’t login! Is that’s what’s bothering
you? Don’t panic, because most routers have
a reset button built in. Check the back of
the router. Either a button or a small hole
will be there. (If it’s a hole, poke a paper
clip into it.) Hold the reset down for 5 seconds and you should be able to access
the network. Hopefully you saved the router’s manual so you can look up the default
username and password. If not, try admin/admin
or admin/password. Then make sure you reset them so you won’t get hacked. If this
doesn’t work, you can look up the manual with your smartphone on the internet.

3. Your router is an energy
vampire –
If power consumption is a problem, do what I do… Turn the router OFF when not in
use. Problem solved. I have my entire entertainment system, including
the router plugged into an APC surge protector.
All I have to do when I go to bed is hit one button and no more energy vampire. I’m all out of wooden stakes.

The other
kind of wireless networking is Bluetooth, which was basically developed by the mobile
phone industry. Like Wi-Fi, it enables devices
to connect to other devices wirelessly. Unlike
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth uses a much weaker signal, since it is designed to communicate
over distances of 30 feet or less. It also
has much more limited bandwidth than Wi-Fi, which is why it’s great for connecting
peripherals like headsets, wireless keyboards and mice, but not so good at transmitting
large files.

If you have problems connecting a device using
Bluetooth, it is usually because the feature is disabled on your device. The cure for this is to find the control panel
on your computer or phone, that turns Bluetooth on and off. Sometimes you need to add a device as well to
get the job done. Below are a couple of links
you might find useful if the problem persists.

While they call it a wired world, as we all know
today’s on-the-go computing environment requires us in many instances to cut the
cord. By understanding the nature and limitations
of wireless networking, you will be better able to understand and deal with what’s
up with Wi-Fi.

In this article on Wi-Fi, I havecovered
everything from the history of Wi-Fi, to how to avoid Wi-Fi hot spot scams, how
to bulletproof your own Wi-Fi security, troubleshooting tips to solve common Wi-Fi
problems, plus timely ways that will make your Wi-Fi use, safe and hassle free.

If you feel your business could use some help with its marketing, contact us at 904-410-2091,We will provide a free marketing analysis to help you get better results. If you'd like
a free copy of our eBook, "Internet Marketing Tips for the 21st Century,"
please fill in the form below and we will give you immediate access to it. Your
information is always kept private and is never sold.

Carl Weiss is president of WorkingtheWebtoWin.com a digital marketing
agency in Jacksonville, Florida that routinely works with bloggers and other online
marketers to grow their businesses.

Until recently, a computer virus
was something you contracted by clicking on a link or an ad that then had you
download a piece of malicious code otherwise known as malware. If you were
lucky, your system's anti-malware program picked it up and eliminated it before
it could do any real harm. If you were not, then your hard drive was corrupted
to the point where it either slowed to a crawl, popped up hundreds of ads, or
froze up completely. So news of a new virus would seem to be no news at all.
Except that in this case, Android phones in Europe have been infected via text
messaging with a new virus called Mazar. Once installed, this malware redirects
all web traffic on the infected smartphone through a proxy that allows
cybercriminals to harvest personal and financial information from victims.
While the virus has not yet spread across the Atlantic, it is only a matter of
time.

Now think about what you
would do were you to receive such a message from what you thought was a friend
or family member. Would you hesitate to
click on the link? More than 100,000
Danes clicked, only to have their smartphones infected with malware that allowed
cybercriminals to read, respond to and/or erase messages contained on the
device. Plus, the malware gave the
perpetrators administrator privileges that also gave them the ability to lock
the phone, redirect all internet searches to a proxy server that they
controlled, and activate the phone’s webcam, or even wipe a phone clean, among
other nefarious activities.

Even worse is the fact that
once infected, the first thing the hackers did was rifle the email addresses of
every contact contained on the device.
These addresses would then be used to send texts to everyone on the
purloined phone. This would then spread
the virus far and wide. Surprisingly, I
read several newsfeeds that reported the virus was set to avoid infecting
smartphones whose language was set to Russian.
Whether this was due to the fact that the hackers were Russian was never
ascertained. Suffice it to say that
unless you want to brush up on your Cyrillic alphabet, this method of avoiding
Mazar is not of much use to the population at large.

While the
MazarBOT is a relatively new peril to Android users, it is not
unprecedented. In a Yahoo Tech blog
published in April, 2015, the online security firm Symantec reported that, “17percent of all Android apps (nearly one
million total) were actually malware in disguise.” In 2013, Symantec uncovered roughly
700,000 virus-laden apps.

The report goes onto warn
Android users from downloading apps from anyplace other than a trusted vendor,
such as Google Play. But as I have
pointed out in previous blogs, even Google Play is not invulnerable to serving
up apps laced with madware or malware.
Ultimately, the onus is on the user to make sure that their devices are
secure and that all apps are thoroughly vetted before they are downloaded.

A lot of these
malware apps were also designed in such a way that scammers are able to fish
for and gain access to the users’ personal information. Most of the time, the
users most affected by these malware apps are those who use devices are running
on either Microsoft Windows or Android platforms.

It’s rear to
hear that an Apple user found a malware app on their device. It not unheard of,
but it is rare. Then again there are those unfortunate few: Apple users whose
devices, for some reason, have contracted malwares through their browsers.

Just a few
months ago, Apple has announced that it removed dozens of apps from the App
Store after detecting that malware were masked and inserted into some
of the apps downloadable from the App Store. The malwares reportedly made their
way to the App Store through a fake version of Apple’s XcodeGhost, which
program developers use to write codes for their apps. Security experts believe
the breech was made when Chinese developers unknowingly downloaded and used the
fake version of XcodeGhost after bypassing Apple’s security system.

Before this
discovery, however, only a total of five apps out of over 1.5 million were
found to have malwares in them. This means that Apple’s security system is still one of the most secure in the world. http://n4bb.com/iphone-virus-guide/

You're the Last Line of Defense

That last line has little
meaning if you find your iPhone has succumbed to an infected app or text. If anything, Android users have become
cagier, since they know their devices are vulnerable. Now Apple users are starting to realize that
no device is invulnerable.

That being said, there are a
number of things that Android users can do to protect themselves:

Install antivirus software – Contrary to popular opinion, smartphones aren’t phones at all. They are computers that can be cracked and hacked the same as any PC, laptop or tablet.

Be wary of using public Wi-Fi nodes since these are breeding grounds for malware.

Thoroughly vet any app you intend on installing.

Open your default messaging app and make sure that you disable the setting that automatically retrieves multi-media messages. (You can do this by going into your phone's settings, select the "more" item under the Wireless & Networks section and look for "Default messaging app” Select the “more” item under the Networks section and deselect the option for auto-retrieval.)

Other than that, do not open
any attachments you receive even from family and friends, unless you call them
(believe it or not, your Android phone can do this) and ask them if they sent
you the attachment. More importantly, if
they act as though they do not know what you are talking about, inform them
that in all likelihood their system has been compromised and all their friends
and family need to be warned that they should not open any attachments
purportedly coming from them.

Just as when fighting a
viral pathogen like Ebola, the only way to prevent the spread of a disease is
by stopping the outbreak at its source. In
this day and age, that’s what it takes to have safe text.

In this article, I discussed the how a new
virus is being spread via text messaging on Android devices. This new type of
Text virus attack is spreading through Europe like wildfire and will soon be
hitting the USA shores. The rise of ransomware and other types of viruses have
made it possible for cyber criminals to profit by going after individuals and
small businesses. Following the how to protect yourself list article will help
minimize your risk and exposure.

If you feel your business could use some help with its marketing, contact us at 904-410-2091,We will provide a free marketing analysis to help you get better results. If you'd like a free copy of our eBook, "Internet Marketing
Tips for the 21st Century," please fill in the form below and you will receive immediate access to the book. Your information is always kept private and is never sold.

Have you ever wondered why some people are extremely successful
with their marketing and others are not? They seem to be able to put great ads together
quickly. They can develop and launch a website in less than a few weeks. Better
still, their return on their marketing investment is much higher than the average
business spending the same amount of money. In this episode, I will cover “getting
organized” to wage war on your competitors. I will also show you a checklist that
when fulfilled and followed, will make you come out on top 99% of the time. Better
still, your return on your investment dollar will be better than it’s ever been.
So tune in and turn onto this week’s episode of Working the Web to Win and learn
the organizational steps that make for a successful marketing campaign.

Getting
the Steps Right - First off, there are things marketers need to
have in place before they develop their marketing plans. Those who create and launch
successful marketing campaigns make sure they have all their ducks in a row. What
I mean by this is they do a lot of prep work to make sure the elements of the campaign
are sound and well planned.

They start with research and setting smart goals. They then
include important factors like, alignment with the company’s objectives, they utilize
their unique selling propositions, they focus on a target market segment, they include
a compelling offer and stick to a reasonable and realistic budget. Finally, they
execute all called for steps and measure their results. Following these steps in
this order will insure success.

Trying to take shortcuts by skipping smart goal setting, not
having/leveraging your USP, leaving out a compelling offer or going after a different
demographic segment without research, often results in poor performance and loss
of revenue.

The Gathering
of Important Things - Let’s start by looking at the resources you need
to gather. You will need many kinds of photos, all your contact info, brochures,
customer lists, market segment statistics, videos, awards and more etc. Here is
a partial list of items you need to gather.

Creating a Knowledge Base leads to Power - By gathering these items,
you will begin to formulate an idea of what your goals and strategy are likely to
be. In the past I have written several articles you may find useful in your efforts
to achieving success. Here is a list of articles that I feel will help you obtain
your goal of launching your next successful marketing campaign.

Set Smart Goals – Remember S.M.A.R.T. stand
for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time Bound. Creating poorly designed
goals are one of the most common mistakes marketers make. This is your foundation.
If your foundation is weak, so will your entire plan be week. I like to start my
goal setting by creating annual goals first and then breaking down the year into
4 quarters, then the months that make up the quarters and then the weeks that make
up the months. Each sub goal (i.e. quarterly and weekly goals) must feed into and
be congruent with the overall annual goal for me to reach what I call success.

Creating your S.M.A.R.T.
Goals - Create
a theme for your year. What do you envision as producing a great year with your
marketing? Don’t just include financial information, be more specific. Include your
budget, the people involved, items to be sold, successful events, target clients,
rewards etc... The more you can envision the details of your success, the greater
the likely hood or achieving that success.

Create
one major marketing goal for the year. This needs to be a goal that you really want
and can achieve in 12 months. Second, create 4 marketing goals that will move you
in the direction of your overall goal for the year. These are the 4 quarterly goals
that need to be reached in order to accomplish your annual goal.

An
example might be: An Annual goal of doubling your client base from 100 to 200 for
a specific product or service. The quarterly goals would be to add 25 new clients
per quarter. Your monthly goals would break this down by showing how you will acquire
these new clients with your marketing. Each week of a month might include a special
sale, advertising, event marketing, direct mail element, networking or cold call
campaign. They also need to include budgetary items, any training/new skills needed,
purchasing necessities and acquiring needed resources. The result of each week’s
effort must turn into the desired results of each month, which in turn, the aggregate
of these months needs to produce the results of your quarterly goal, etc...

The Second Most Important
Element - Along
with creating S.M.A.R.T. goals, the second most important element is accountability.
If you want to achieve your goals, make sure you have a way of being held accountable
for the goals you have set. We use a business coach to plan our goals (i.e. make
sure the goals are objectively S.M.A.R.T.) and to also hold us accountable for the
goals we set. I recommend using a business coach (like Action Coach Intl.), or an
“Agent of Record” that does strategic planning (we are an Agent of Record marketing
agency), outside coaching services like Marketing Matters or the SBDC at a college
near you. Having some kind of external objective sounding board is a must. Their
job is not only to help you plan, but to make sure your ideas and goals are realistic
and to hold you accountable for reaching your goals.

Now
that you have created your annual marketing plan, it's time to execute the first
quarter of your new campaign. If this is your first try, don’t get discouraged if
you aren’t reaching your goals. Go back and figure out what went wrong. Did you
have a clear vision of what you wanted to achieve? Did you over commit? Were your
goals unrealistic? Were they truly S.M.A.R.T. goals? Did you have a way of being
held accountable? What was missing?

It
has been my experience that it is rare to achieve a high level of success, if you
go it alone, the first time around. I found (especially in my early days) that I
sometimes overestimated my ability to execute my plan and underestimated the time
and resources needed to achieve a goal. Understand that there is a learning curve
to this process. Commit to long term success by understanding that you learn more
from your failures than you do through your success. However, never forget that
your goal is to achieve success. Putting real effort in your planning, research
and S.M.A.R.T. goal setting, up front, will pay big dividends towards achieving
your success. The rest is execution.

In
this article I have discussed how to launch your next successful marketing campaign.
I have also included the steps needed for success along with links to ample resources,
list and examples, to help you create your very own, successful campaign.

If you feel you don’t want to spend the considerable time, money
and effort needed to create such a plan, consider retaining a marketing agency.
Not only do they have the time, contacts and experience to perform the entire process,
often it will cost you little or nothing to retain them since their fees are often
paid by the advertiser.

If you feel your business could use some help with its marketing, contact us at 904-410-2091,We will provide a free marketing analysis to help you get better results. If you'd like a free copy of our eBook, "Internet Marketing
Tips for the 21st Century," (in its 3rd edition), please fill in the form below.
You will gain immediate access to it and as always, your information is kept private
and is never sold. Don't forget to Plus us on Google+.

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By Hector Cisneros I have been actively networking in a number of organizations since the early 1980’s. My experience, tells me that most...

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Our Privacy Policy - Your privacy is important to us. We are the sole owners of the information collected on this site. We only have access to information you voluntarily give us via email or other direct contacts from you. We will not sell or rent this information to anyone. We will use your information to respond to you, regarding the reason you contacted us. We will not share your information with any third party outside of our organization, other than as necessary to fulfill your request. Unless you ask us not to, we may contact you via email in the future to tell you about our FREE eBooks, new services, specials, or changes to this privacy policy. If you to unsubscribe from our newsletter or remove access to our FREE eBooks, you can unsubscribe when you receive our newsletters, email me at, hectorc@workingthewebtowin.com with the heading Unscribe from Newsletter and Free eBooks, listing your the email address you subscribed with. you can also text me at 904-712-9355 with the same information or send us a letter to unsubscribe at Working the Web to Win, 3740 Beach Blvd. #300 Jacksonville Fl. 32207. Again please make sure you tell us the email address you subscribed with.